Guantanamo Bay costs $150 million a year to US

Eurasia News

The deteriorating situation in Guantanamo – where a mass hunger strike has been unfolding for over two months – continues to raise the eyebrows of human rights groups.

Twenty-four hunger strikers are now receiving enteral feeds, with three people “being observed in the detainee hospital,” according to Guantanamo Bay Public Affairs Director Lieutenant Colonel Samuel E. House. His most recent report put the official number of hunger strikers at 100.

Although Guantanamo Bay remains open over four years after Obama pledged to close it, the President continues to voice his disapproval of the detention centre.

In his first public response to the on-going hunger strike, Obama said it was “not a surprise” that there are “problems in Guantanamo.”

“It is critical for us to understand that Guantanamo is not necessary to keep America safe. It is expensive. It is inefficient. It hurts us in terms of our international standing. It lessens cooperation with our allies on counterterrorism efforts. It is a recruitment tool for extremists. It needs to be closed,” he said in an April 30 statement.

Earlier this month it has been revealed that keeping Guantanamo Bay running is costing the US some $150 million a year.